The Ocean and Us

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Paul van Gardingen, Director, Ecosystem Services for
Poverty Alleviation
Services fromMarine and Coastal Ecosystems are Essential
in Transforming our World by 2030.
Since 2010, when the United Kingdom’s Ecosystem
Services for Poverty Alleviation programme, ESPA, (www.
), was launched, its research generated evidence
of how ecosystems contribute to human well-being and the
reduction of poverty around the world. Ten of ESPA’s projects
have documented the importance of coastal and marine
ecosystems in some of the world’s poorest countries.
ESPA was designed to link the Millennium Development
Goals and the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment to
demonstrate how ecosystem services can provide a
sustainable pathway out of poverty for the world’s poor.
The results of research are now highly relevant as plans are
developed to implement the UN’s SDGS.
What does ESPA’s research on coastal and marine
ecosystems mean for the SDGs?
The benefits that people derive from coastal and marine
ecosystems are linked to virtually all of the 17 proposed
SDGs. Efforts to ‘conserve and sustainable use the oceans,
seas and marine resources’ (Goal 14), will help to end
poverty, end hunger, promote health, provide clean drinking
water, promote jobs and economic growth, provide resilient
infrastructure and combat climate change and its impacts
(Goals 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9, 13).
In many locations, human consumption of services from
marine and coastal ecosystems is no longer sustainable (Goal
12), leading to resource degradation and in some cases conflict.
Climate change including sea-level rise and extreme events,
is also reducing the resilience and productivity of ecosystems,
but so are other social and environmental changes.
In some regions the combined impact of environmental
change and loss of ecosystem productivity means people’s
livelihoods are being affected leading people to migrate to
other locations, often cities.
ESPA’s research is however also showing that it is possible
to reverse the trends of over-exploitation, degradation
and conflict over resources. There are examples of how
communities are being empowered to make better decisions
leading to more sustainable and resilient outcomes.
As we look forward to implementing the SDGs, evidence
from research programmes including ESPA shows that
coastal and marine ecosystems must been seen as a crucial
component of how the world builds a sustainable future. The
challenge will be how to learn from this research evidence
to build a future where the links between ecosystems and
people become more productive, resilient and sustainable in
a rapidly changing world.